Sportswear



Sept. 9, 1941. s. ALEXANDER SPORTSWEAR Filed Feb. 15, 1940 INVENTOR 87ANFO/i'0 ALEXANDER ATTEIRNEY5 Patented Sept. 9, 1941 SPORTSWEAR Stanford Alexander, New York, N. Y., assignor to Saqui & Co., Inc., a corporation of New York Application February 13, 1940, Serial No. 318,665

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in sportswear and has for a principal object the provision of a garment which from outward appearances is a dress, but which includes a crotch portion formed integral with or forming an extension of an inwardly disposed box pleat formed in the skirt of the garment.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a dress opening down the front completely, and having an inverted or inwardly disposed box pleat carrying extensions which are stitched or otherwise secured together to form a crotch, the front end of which is secured to the skirt along a line adjacent to one edge of the opening. This is predicated on the dress opening along the center in front and the crotch extending across the skirt centrally from back to front. In other arrangements the opening down the front may be on either side of the center, in which case the front end of the crotch is secured to the skirt in a position which will fall on or adjacent to the front center line when the skirt is closed.

A further object is the provision of a drem having a full skirt a portion of the back of which extends forward amidships and is attached to the front to form normally invisible shorts.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Referring to the drawing:

Figure l is a front view of one embodiment of the invention as applied to a sports dress;

Figure 2 is a rear view of the dress shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a cross section of the dress as viewed along the line 3-3, Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a view of a portion of a dress with the skirt opened in front showing the crotch arrangement; and

Figure 5 is a view of a portion of a dress with the skirt partially broken away to show further details of how the extensions of the inverted box pleat form a crotch.

Referring to Figure 1, the dress has a waist portion and a skirt portion generally designated by the numeral II, both said waist portion and said skirt portion being joined together by a belt portion I2. The waist portion may be of any desired form.

However, in the drawing, the waist, the belt and the skirt open entirely down the front center. The waist may have sleeves 13, a high neck It and trim such as pockets l5 and IS. The waist and belt may be provided with buttons I! which are engaged by buttonholes IS. The skirt is provided with buttons 19 which engage buttonholes 20. The skirt is provided with a fly 2| which covers the buttons 19 when the skirt is buttoned may be omitted and other decorative eflects ap-- plied.

The back of the skirt, referring now to Figure 2, is provided with an inverted box pleat- N. The meeting edges 25, 26 of the inverted box pleat are stitched together. down to the point 21 and are free from this point to the bottom of the skirt.

. Inside the skirt, the two halves 28, 29 (Figures 4 and 5) may be stitched together along a seam 30. Beginning at the point 3|, the two halves 28 and 29 extend forwardly, the extensions being designated as 28 and 290; respectively. These extensions are also stitched together by the extension 300 of the seam 30.

Joining the extension 28a, is a second extension 28b and joining the extension 2911 is a second extension 2%. These second extensions may be stitched on to the first extensions by seams 32, 33, or the second extensions may be formed integral with the first extensions. A seam we joins the tops of the second extensions 28b and 29b together and may be continuous with the seams 30 30a and 31!.

The joined second extensions 28b and 29b ma be secured to the skirt in front along the line 34 which is adjacent to the buttonholed edge of the skirt opening.

Another arrangement contemplates forming the extensions-28b and 29b integral with the material of the front portion of the skirt, for example, integral with the material of the right front portion of the skirt.

In the embodiment herein shown and described, the front edge of the box pleat extensions are secured together in the manner described to form a crotch, and are illustrated as stitched to the buttonholed edge of the opening. However, other arrangements contemplate detachably securing the front edge of the crotch to the skirt, for

example, by means of buttons and buttonholes, hooks and eyes, snap fasteners or slide fasteners.

In the embodiment herein shown and described, the skirt opens entirely down the front center. However, it is obvious that in cases where the skirt opens to one side or the other of the center of the skirt, the crotch member, instead of be- 55 ing attached to one edge of the opening, would beattachedtothefrontofthe skirtalongaline approximately in line with the center of the skirt.

By constructing the crotch member of the extensions of the halves of a box pleat in the manner herein shown and described, applicant provides a combined skirt with shorts in which the skirt hangs normally without affecting the silhouette thereof, and the presence of the shorts is not apparent to others.

The dress may easily be put on by unbuttoning it down the front and opening it, after which the wearer raises the right foot and steps into the opening between the crotch and the right side of the skirt to which it is attached. She then puts her arms into the sleeves, closes the dress around herself and buttons it up. In taking the dress oil, the operation is Just the reverse.

Although a simple embodiment of the invention is herein shown and described, it is obvious that many changes may be made in the dress herein shown and described without departing from the spirit of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A dress including a front opening skirt having an inverted pleat formed in the back thereof, said pleat having its abutting edges secured together from the top of said skirt to a point where the skirt may hang freely from' the hips and having its edges free from said point to the bottom of said skirt, and extensions of the free halves of said pleat extending forwardly within said skirt and attached to one edge of the front thereof, said extensions having their upper edges the waist to the hipline being secured together and the lower portion from the hipline down to the bottom of the skirt being unattached and hanging free, the lower portion of said box pleat being divided and inwardly projecting as aforesaid, and the two 'halves thereof extending forwardly within said skirt to the front thereof, both being secured to said front along only one edge of the opening, the top edges of said (11- vided and extended portions being secured together to form a crotch.

3. In a. dress opening down the front from the neck to the hem, a waist member, a skirt member, a belt joining said waist member and skirt member, an inverted box pleat formed in the back of said skirt, the lower portion of said box pleat being divided into two parts, extensions on said parts extending forwardly within said skirt to the front thereof and both secured therein to one of the edges of the front opening, and means securing the top edges of' said extensions to form a crotch within said skirt, said crotch being imperceptible and leaving the silhouette of said skirt unimpaired.

STANFORD ALEXANDER. 

